It Runs in the Family
by Rayner Fox
Summary: After a family reunion, Peter suddenly finds that he's related to Superman, and that the Juctice League has a team of teen hereos with an opening for a spider-themed member. Will he join the team and learn more about being a hero? Or will he stick to being a solo act? Or can he risk NOT joining the team when another spider has a web with Pete's name on it?
1. The Reunion

**The Family Reunion**

* * *

Peter Parker stared out the window of the rental car, watching a corn field after corn field passed by. It felt like hours since he'd seen the last small group of houses that could be considered a town.

He wondered how much further it was to Smallville. Aunt May insisted that it was close, but Peter wasn't so sure now.

Earlier that morning, he and Aunt May had boarded a plane in New York and flown to Wichita, Kansas. There they'd gotten a rental car to drive to the Kent Farm, where Aunt May would be able to see her cousin and childhood friend Martha Kent at a family reunion.

The Parker's had gotten the invitation a month ago, and somehow Peter had been able to earn enough money for a plane ticket for him and his aunt.

_This is all for Aunt May_, he reminded himself as another hour passed by. _It'll help her._

He'd made it a priority to get May to the reunion after she'd expressed her sincere wishes to see Martha again, but at the time household problem was where the money needed to be put. So Peter had sought to surprise her with the trip.

Now though, as he waited impatiently to arrive at the farm, Peter began to doubt that it had been such a good idea. His mind fluttered through a number of scenarios that could possibly be happening in New York.

Sandman could be robbing a bank. Rhino could be rampaging downtown. The Shocker could be holding someone captive. Doc Ock could be attempting to perform some weird experiment.

He sighed and miserably looked at his Spidey costume that he'd somehow managed to get through security.

_What was the point of bringing that anyway? _he pondered.

"Here we are, Peter, welcome to Smallville," Aunt May announced as the car slowed down for the city speed limit.

"Finally," Peter blurted out, but regretted it a moment later. He didn't want May to know that he was bored.

"Don't get too excited, we're almost there, but not yet. The Kent Farm is another hour away," replied his aunt.

_Lovely_.

* * *

Connor was starting to get bored. The family reunion turned out to be less exciting than he'd been told. Most of the people there were adults, any kids there were mostly small children.

The only teen there actually turned out to be Megan, who had come along with him, though it had taken him a while to talk Clark into it.

"Hmm, I wonder where they are," Martha – his "grandmother" – said absent mindedly as she approached him from behind.

"Where who are?" Connor asked. Having nothing better to do, he decided that he might as well learn more about his family, which was still a mostly foreign concept to him.

"My cousin May," Martha replied. "She should have been here by now; I hope she hasn't gotten lost."

"Is that her?" Connor asked. For a few minutes, Connor had been hearing the putter of a car as it came down the dirt road.

"I hope so, and she has a nephew about your age."

Connor wondered what she meant by that. Did Martha mean that this "May" had a nephew who was an infant or a nephew who was a sixteen year old?

* * *

Peter let out a sigh of relief as they pulled up to a homely house. In a field not too far from said house was a pavilion where many people were mingling amongst themselves.

_This is for Aunt May_, Peter reminded himself. From what he could see the reunion mostly consisted of adults, and his break from hero-ing was going to be very boring.

"Look, there's Martha," May cried when they parked the car. Quickly his aunt exited the car to greet her cousin.

Peter followed May's lead slowly, stiff from the long ride. Martha Kent was an elderly lady, very much like his aunt. They were about the same height and they both had grey hair.

Standing beside Martha Kent was a boy who looked to be about sixteen years of age. He had black hair and wore a black shirt with blue jean cargo pants.

"Peter, get over here," Aunt May joyfully ordered him.

Peter obediently marched over.

"Peter, this is Martha Kent and her grandson Connor," his aunt introduced.

"Hi." Peter offered his hand to both the Kent's. Martha gladly accepted his hand, but Connor was more reluctant to shake.

**As anyone can see, I'v gotten slightly bored and have it a road block with both my stories, plus this idea crept up on my while I was making cupcakes, so I decided to write it down out of boredom.**

**Please review. If you like it give me suggestions for the plot and anything else you think would be good for this story. If even a few of you like it enough, I'll happily continue. Just so you know I have no idea where this will go, you can help me decided that.**

**Also I only know main stream stuff about Spidey and Supey, so please tell me about them, I'd like to make fans of both happy.**

**I don't own Spider-Man or Young Justice, and I don't think I really want to, too much paper work. I'm content with being a fan.**

**~Rayner out**


	2. The Newspapers

**The Newspapers**

* * *

Connor eyed the Peter person suspiciously after they'd let go of each other's hand. He couldn't help but notice that Peter's grip was more pronounced than May's or anyone else's whom he'd shaken hands with.

Peter didn't look like he'd be able to have a grip like the one Connor felt. He had a similar build to Robin and was only about a foot taller than the Boy Wonder. A strong grip just didn't match with a person like Peter.

"So where's Clark?" May asked Martha, "I haven't seen him since he was a teenager, and I don't think Peter's ever met him."

"He should be with everyone else," she replied leading Peter and May back to the tent.

* * *

Peter smiled. _Maybe this won't be such a boring vacation after all._

May was already enjoying herself, and not all those attending the reunion were adults. Connor seemed to be an agreeable person, albeit a little bit standoffish.

Martha led them to the pavilion to meet Clark. On one of the shaded area under the tent were rows of tables set up, a few were for sitting at while there others had food on them buffet style. Peter saw many different kinds of dishes, most of which he liked and even if he didn't he'd gladly eat them over airplane food.

"Clark," Martha called as they entered the more crowded area. Almost instantly a man in his mid twenties who looked almost identical to Connor turned around. "Clark, this is my cousin, May Parker."

Clark nodded. "Yes, I heard a lot about you in the past few days. You and my mom seem to be very close." He offered May his with a warm smile, assumedly Clark was Connor's father, but the only thing they really seemed to share was their physical features.

"And this is her nephew, Peter Parker."

"Peter Parker? The photographer who takes pictures of Spider-Man?" he asked, while shaking Peter's hand.

Peter's smile broadened. "Yeah, that's me. And you're Clark Kent, a reporter for the _Daily Planet_, correct?"

* * *

"Come on, May. Let's let the two of them talk, we've got a lot of catching up to do ourselves," Martha said, and Connor followed their lead. He didn't exactly want to stick around for the conversation that was bound to follow, he'd rather be doing something else than listen to it.

He meandered through the crowd, following his ears as he looked for Megan. Connor guessed that she'd probably be with the little kids; they seemed to like her a lot.

"Enjoying yourself?" greeted his girlfriend as he approached the designated play area.

Connor just shrugged in reply. He was neutral on that point, for the most part. "It's kind of boring."

"I saw you heading towards the drive way? Did someone arrive?"

"Yeah, just M - er, my grandmother's cousin and her nephew." Connor just barely caught himself. Before the reunion, when he'd first met Martha and Jonathan, they insisted that he call them his grandparents.

"What were they like?" Megan excitedly asked, she was extremely happy to meet new people.

"May's nice, and her nephew photographs Spider-Man for some newspaper," Connor replied.

"You mean you're related to Peter Parker?"

**So this one decided to hop into my head during panio class, and I can thank all those who are reading this for that. This is probably the best turn out for the first chapter of a story that I've posted. So here's chapter two.**

**Please tell me what you think, and leave suggestions. I know where I want this story to go, but I don't know how to get there and your suggestions stimulate my brain.**

**Also I only know the mainstream stuff about Supey and Spidey, so if I get it wrong forgive me and correct me. I nee all the help I can get.**

**If I owned Young Justice it would not be on hatuis so often. If I own Spider-Man my real name would be Stan Lee, and it's not.**

**~Rayner out**


	3. The Spider's Not a Menace!

**The Spider's Not a Menace!**

* * *

"I guess so, but who's Spider-Man?" Connor questioned. He knew that he'd heard that name somewhere before, but he normally associated spiders with a certain assassin.

"He's a superhero in New York City," Megan replied.

Connor raised his brow. "If he's a superhero, then why haven't I heard of him?"

"Most people think he's a menace, so he doesn't get much publicity that's good if he gets any at all," she replied with a shrug.

"Why's that? If he's a hero, then he's definitely not a menace so why call him that." It didn't make sense to Connor, how could someone call a hero a menace?

"I don't know why. J. Jonah Jameson's the one who started it all. I think he calls most heroes who wear a mask a menace, but he seems to like calling Spider-Man that," Megan said.

"Spidey's not a menace," declared one of the little kid, who's name Conner thought was Jacob. "He's an awesome superhero, right up there with Batman and Superman."

"Well then, then that definitely disqualifies him as a menace," replied Megan, tickling Jacob as she pulled him into a hug.

Connor sighed and sat down in the haystack that the little children were playing in. _I'll get more information off the internet later._

* * *

"So, how do you know where Spider-Man is?" Clark asked. Peter and Clark had been swapping interesting stories about their careers. He had also noticed that Clark was very interested in Spider-Man, but who wasn't? With J.J. throwing wild accusations about him being a menace and all it got the attention of a lot of people.

"He just calls me whenever something's happening in the city." Peter shrugged. _Note to self: come up with better alibi. It makes me sound like some kind of glory hound._

Clark slowly nodded.

"So, what's it like in Metropolis? What's Superman like?" he asked, taking the opportunity to ask his own set of questions. He'd never seen Superman anywhere other than on TV and in newspapers.

"Like you or me," Clark replied, adjusting his glasses, "except with superpowers."

Peter nodded and smiled.

* * *

Connor looked over the food that had been replenished for dinner. There was a lot to choose from, but he just chose an ordinary hamburger and a hot dog or two before stepping out of the line.

Megan, on the other hand, taking a little bit of everything from the table, while musing what they could be made out of.

He waited patiently for his girlfriend to go through the line and together they headed for the table. There was a table set aside for each family there, some were larger than other, but the Kent family really just consisted for his "grandparents", Clark, and himself. Megan sat with them because she was a guest.

But Connor saw that that status had changed. At the Kent table sat Peter and his aunt, conversing with Jonathan, Martha, and Clark.

"So, that's Peter Parker?" Megan whispered to him as they arrived.

Connor merely nodded. "That's him."

* * *

"Who is this? I didn't think that Clark would have a child, let alone two," asked Aunt May, bring Peter's attention away from food. Just sitting down at the table was Connor and a girl with red hair.

"Oh, this is Megan Morse, Connor's girlfriend. Her uncle's a friend of the family," replied Martha.

**I am sorry for two things. One not writing this sooner. Two not making this longer. I really wanted to get something a tad more interesting in the chapter, but it just wouldn't come. I plan to have some interesting scenes soon before the reunion's over. **

**If you have ANY, I repeat ANY suggestions, be my guest and send them my way. I like them and they get my brain going.**

**PLEASE, reveiw. If I got anything wrong tell me now, so I won't in the future.**

**Also I don't own Young Justice or Spider-Man, if I did I'd be rich and not writing my thoughts on FanFiction, but in comic books.**

**~Rayner out**


	4. The Competition

**The Competition**

* * *

Connor tuned out Peter's and Megan's conversation about Spider-Man. He wanted to know the basics about the hero, not the in depth reports Peter was giving. At least Megan was enjoying it.

He ate his hot dog and hamburgers quietly, the adult's conversation was no better. It sounded like Martha and May were talking about desserts. Clark was having a conversation about something or other with Pa Kent, so talking to him wasn't an option.

He'd just have to until someone started talking about something that he knew about.

* * *

"Wow, that sounds like it was amazing," Megan said excitedly. Her eyes looked far off as she probably imagined an aerial battle between Green Goblin and Spider-Man that Peter had just described to her.

Peter smiled broadly. It was nice to have someone finally appreciate what he did. He wished there were more like her.

"So, are your parents coming?" Megan asked after a long pause in the conversation.

The pause continued, because Peter didn't exactly want to answer. It'd always been hard for him to voice something like that, but it had been even harder after Uncle Ben's death.

"Um … they're not … they're just … not," he started. _I sound_ so _idiotic._

"I'm sorry, I didn't meant to pry," the red head replied almost as if she'd read the thoughts that'd been going through his head.

"No, it's okay." He offered a good natured smile. "Really."

"Hey, everyone, announcements," someone called loudly above the noise of all the conversation.

_Thank God_, he thought, turning from his awkward conversation to the speaker. Pa Kent was using a portable microphone and speaker to talk to everyone.

"Thank you all for coming to the Kent family reunion," he continued. "As everyone knows this is far from over and it hasn't even begun."

_Yeah, it's gonna be a whole week. A whole week away from NYC, where who knows _what_ could be wreaking havoc._

"Tomorrow, the Family Games will begin, so everyone get a good night's rest, and you're gonna need it if you want to beat the games running champion – the Holts." A loud cheer came from the other side of the pavilion, where a family of about five or six people sat at a long table.

Peter involuntarily gulped. _They could give Rhino a hard time._

The family consisted of four boys, a mom and a dad. Each of the siblings looked as if they played very sport known to man, and were related to Flash Thompson.

_I don't think I'm gonna be playing those games._

* * *

"What are the 'Family Games'?" Connor asked, looking over to Clark to elaborate. He hadn't been told all that much when Clark had convinced him to come.

"Just a family tradition," Martha answered. "Let's see. This year there are going to be relay races, egg tosses, water balloon tosses – or fights as they so often are, tug-of-war, and much more. They've really outdone themselves this year."

"That sounds like fun, Connor and I should be a team," Megan declared before he could decline the idea of participating. Connor barely made it through P.E. without blowing his cover, how was he supposed to do something like the Family Games?

"Actually, Megan," Clark interjected kindly. "The games require a team of four. I was thinking that maybe you, Connor, me, and Peter could from a team."

"Wha … No, I don't think that's a good idea," Peter replied sheepishly.

"Oh, come on, it'll be fun." Megan flashed a smile at him that no one could resist.

"I … guess it wouldn't be so bad." Peter shrugged reluctantly.

"_This is a bad idea, Megan. Two Kryptonians and one Martian on a team with a normal human – who doesn't know he's teamed up with aliens. What are we thinking_?" he telepathically questioned.

"_Come on, Connor_," she answered. "_It'll be fun._"

"_Yeah, fun._"

**I am so sorry it took me this long to update, hit a rather large writers block and I'm kind of lucky that I even got an idea for this chatper.**

**Let's face it, I don't own Spidder-Man or Young Justice.**

**I also want to hear some suggestions, there are so many interesting possiblities when you think about this situation long enough.**

**~Rayner out**


	5. The Assessment

**The Assessment **

* * *

"Could someone get the door for me?" Peter called as he carried some of his luggage to the Kent farm house. Since he and Aunt May had forgotten to bring a tent, they'd be sleeping in the guest rooms. Though Peter thought that even if they did bring a tent, they still would have ended up in the farm house. Martha seemed really eager to reconnect with his aunt.

"Sure." Clark opened the door for him.

"Thanks," he said as he headed up the stair and to his room. It was right next to Connor's and across from Megan's.

_I guess I'll be seeing a lot of them_, he thought as he brought his suit case and knapsack to his room. The couple was standing in the hallway talking in low voices to one another.

He set his stuff down on the bed and looked around the modest room. It felt homely and comforting while at the same time foreign. If it weren't for the fact that he was Spider-Man and supposed to be protecting New York, he might actually enjoy his time at the Kent reunion a lot more.

_Best get settled in._ Peter began to unpack his clothing and other belongings. There were dressers empty and ready for him to put his stuff in. It didn't take him long to put his stuff away, and he made sure to hide his Spider-Man costume in his unpack suit case that he put in the closet. _Who knows if I'm gonna need my back pack or not. _

"Hey, Peter?" Peter looked up from his stuff to see Clark standing in his doorway. "We're going to be having a team meeting down stairs in a little while."

"Okay."

* * *

Connor sat around the kitchen table, already bored of the meeting that hadn't even begun. Megan sat there with a happy smile on her face.

Peter walked down the stairs and joined them.

_Where's Clark? _Connor mentally complained. In another minute or so, Clark joined them.

"I see everyone's here, good. Now we can figure out what our plan is for the games," announced Clark, occupying the only empty seat around the kitchen table. "So I we already know what Megan and Connor are capable of, what about you, Peter? Are you good at sports?"

"Ah …. No, I've never really been good at sports," he answered. "Care to fill me in on what you guys are good at?"

"I'm a cheerleader," piped up Megan. "Connor's petty athletic."

_Of course, I'm strong_, Connor thought. _And teaming up with a regular human is a bad idea. _

* * *

_I'm athletic too_, Peter thought. _It's just not a good idea to show it._

"Well, I'm pretty smart, but I don't think that'll help," he said with a modest shrug.

"Who knows, might come in handy during that games," Clark respond with a smile.

"So, what games are gonna be played exactly? Martha said that they'd outdone themselves this year," Peter asked. He really wanted to know what was going to be played aside from the few that Martha had listed.

Clark laughed, and Peter glanced at Connor and Megan. They didn't seem to know what Clark was laughing at either.

"Yes, they certainly have outdone themselves. That's mostly because the Holts have won for years and they want someone else to win this year," Clark replied.

_That's a comforting thought._

"They plan to have the usual stuff, but this years they've add Capture the Flag, Dodge Ball, Ultimate Dodge Ball, Nuke 'Em, and surprisingly Mission Impossible," supplied Clark.

* * *

"What games are those?" Megan asked as Connor raised an eyebrow at the list. "What's Nuke 'Em?"

"I've never played it before, but I was told that it was a variant of Volley Ball except it's an elimination game," he replied.

"And Mission Impossible?" Peter asked, his voice sounded concerned.

"It's a night game," he supplied. "It's very interesting. They'll explain that one later. But we're going to need a plan."

"What kind of plan would that be?" Connor asked. He felt that they were beating around the bush with those questions. They'd find out what they were going to what would happen tomorrow when the time came, but if there was a plan that needed to be made then they ought to make it and get to bed.

"The relay race is the first thing that's going to happen, and that's really all we need to plan for. The race is where the Holts always take the lead on the score board," said Clark. "The race is going to be around the camping field, and of course, done in four parts. So who wants to run first?"

* * *

_Oh, great a relay race, that's not going to be pretty_. Peter remembered what had happened the last time that he'd tried a relay race and let's just say that it'd been one of the most humiliating P.E. instances yet.

"I will," volunteered Megan. "It sounds like fun."

"I guess I'll go next," Connor said, sounding rather reluctant.

"When do you want to go Peter?" Clark asked, and Peter bit his lip.

"I guess I could go last." He shrugged. Maybe if the rest of his team got a head, he could keep the lead and they'd win.

"Okay, that settles everything. Are there any questions?"

"Yeah, what's the score board you mentioned earlier? And how do we score?" Peter asked.

"Simple really, each event has a certain amount of point that you can get. The relay race is the one that you can score the most on, because whoever gets the baton to their teammate first earns a point for their team," replied Clark.

"So it's really crucial to win it then, or at least get a teammate across each parts finish line?" Peter asked. _Oh, boy I hope it isn't._

"Pretty much," he replied. "Get some sleep, you three, we'll do just fine."

_Yeah, I sure hope so._

**Sorry if this is kind of boring, but its also needed to explain the games that will occur. If you have any further questions about it just ask in a review. Tell me what you think of it.**

**Remember also that today we're out of school and (hopefully) at home and not a work, because today is a day to remember the Veteran. This chapter is dedicated to those men and women who've fought for our freedom, especailly the one's who didn't make it home. May they never be forgotten.**

**~Rayner out**


	6. The Breakfast of Champions

**The Breakfast of Champions**

* * *

Peter was awoken unceremoniously before the dawn.

"Wha …. What's go on?" He rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he spotted Clark flipping his light switch on.

"Rise and shine. The day starts early on a farm and so does the family reunion," Clark responded matter of factly.

_This is for Aunt May. This is for Aunt May,_ he thought to himself as he reluctantly got out of bed. Sleep heavy in his eyes, Peter pulled on a pair of jeans and a tee-shirt. He swiped his comb through his hair a few times as he headed down stairs.

* * *

Connor didn't appreciate being woken up so early, but he wasn't going to complain. Megan seemed totally unaffected by the early wake up call.

In fact, she was so unaffected by the early hour that she was assisting Martha and May Parker make pancakes for breakfast, which were smelling extremely good. She was suggesting different ingredients to make the breakfast dish really good, and it sounded like blue berries were going to be added to the breakfast.

He heard a yawn and saw Peter coming down the stair. He could see that Peter wasn't much of a morning person.

"What's for breakfast?" he asked after another big yawn.

"Blue berry pancakes," Megan answered, bringing three plates into the dining area for them. May and Martha followed carrying more plates for the rest of the Kent's who were arriving.

"Is anything that I can help you with, Aunt May?" Peter asked as a plate of pancakes was put in front of him.

"No, Peter, Megan was helpful in the kitchen so the only thing that we need it the syrup," May replied.

"I've got it," Clark called, carrying his own plate of breakfast and the maple syrup.

* * *

"These are great," Peter commented to Megan after a few bites of the pancakes.

"I should hope so, they're the breakfast of champions'," she replied happily.

"Ah … isn't the breakfast of champions' cake?" he asked jokingly.

"Oh," she answered with a thoughtful look. "I guess it is."

"So, you four ready for the games to begin today?" Jonathan asked them. Peter merely stared at his breakfast and waited for the others to answer. He honestly didn't know if he was ready so he wasn't really the person who should answer, but even if he didn't know he'd do his best to help his team win.

It was Megan who answered for everyone. "Yes, we're ready. When's the relay race going to begin?"

Jonathan took a swig of his orange juice before answering, "Well, it's only just going on six thirty right now, so I suppose that means that you've got another hour or so before the relay race. That should give you enough time to warm up and finish breakfast."

* * *

Connor, Megan, and Peter were jogging around the camping field in a warm up exercise. Though Connor and company had been up for at least an hour, other Kent family members were just starting to wake up. Most had congregated at the pavilion where breakfast was being survived. Well most of the Kent extended family had.

The Holt team had apparently had the same idea as Clark and had roused themselves early to warm up. It rather irritated Connor that they had, because the Holt coupled with his super hearing was getting on his nerves.

He could hear them chatter amongst themselves as they jogged on ahead of them. They were discussing how pathetic his team was, they didn't know how totally wrong they were, but Connor guessed that was the point. He was certain that they didn't want anyone to know that his team was comprised of three aliens and one human, especially when those three aliens were superheroes.

_"Don't worry, Connor, everything's going to be alright. By the end of this week, we'll have had fun and no one will be the wiser,"_ Megan told him telepathically, evidentially sensing his concerns.

_"I hope you're right, because it could be really bad if you aren't."_

* * *

Peter consciously monitored his speed, keeping it a little slower than Megan's or Connor's. He'd go faster during the race, but for now he didn't want to overdo things. Besides, he didn't want to bother the couple in front of him, they looked like they were enjoying themselves and he didn't want to be a third wheel.

It kind of felt nice to trot along at a leisurely pace.

_When was the last time running was ever so peaceful?_ Thinking back Peter could only recall a few times that he'd ever enjoyed something like this. Mostly whenever he was running or trotting or jogging it wasn't for recreational stuff. Usually something was behind him and determined to kill him or rather Spider-Man. The only other time he would run from something when he wasn't Spider-Man was when Flash was after him.

"So, you're other member of the Kent team?" someone said and Peter glanced to his side. Jogging beside him was one of the Holt boys.

Peter just nodded.

"I haven't seen you at any of the previous reunions," he continued, pressing for a conversation.

"Yeah, I don't think we were able to make any of the previous ones for one reason or another," Peter replied. "We were just barely able to make it to this one."

"So how are you related to the Kent family? I'm Abel, by the way."

"Apparently, my aunt's the cousin of Martha Kent. Plus they were also friends when they were kids." He merely shrugged.

"Makes sense, the Kent's are a really big family. So, how'd someone like you get wrangled into the Family Games?" Abel asked after taking a moment to process Peter's answer.

"Excuse me?" Peter knew that he wasn't the most athletic looking person in the world, but the way Abel put it made it sound like Clark had been desperate when he'd asked him to join the team.

"Don't get me wrong, but someone like you doesn't usually participate in the games. So what was your reason? Because you seriously don't look like winning material," answered Abel. "I mean, your team definitely has the potential to win, but you don't look like you do. So what was your reason?"

"'Cause I want to, I guess. I've never been to a reunion like this before, so trying something new isn't such a bad idea, and besides others on my team really wanted me to join so I did," Peter answered.

"Okay, just giving you a fair warning though, those games are really tough and a lot of people really want to win, especially me and my brothers'. Good luck at the games and may the best team win," Abel said as he spend on ahead and quickly passed Megan and Connor.

"Yeah, good luck to you too," Peter hesitantly answered the more athletic boy.

_Well, that was certainly anything but comforting. I hope I can do this._

**So, so sorry for taking so long to write this. I hope you all are having a nice Thanksgiving break and Black Friday. Anyway, I'm always opened to suggestions and would love to hear your thoughs in review. I'm would also like to thank the fifty-one people who are following this story and the thirty-one people who have favorited this, and also thank you for whoever put me on a community, even if I don't know what it is, thanks.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Spider-Man or Young Justice. I also do not own the image I'm using for the cover. It belongs to kanapy-art on diviant art. I wish there were some way to ask he or she if I could use it, but I don't have an account. If they are reading this fanfiction and don't want me to use thier beautiful picture as a cover image, just send me a shout out and I will imidaitely take it down. And I appoligize ahead of time for not asking.**

**~Rayner out**


	7. The Starting Line

**The Starting Line**

* * *

Connor frowned the conversation with Abel had obviously not helped Peter at all. He had heard the conversation, but was unable to do anything to soothe his teammate's nerves. He was too far away for a human to have heard it, so he couldn't do anything to help without risking dropping a hint about his super hearing. In other words, he was stuck.

"You guys ready?" Clark asked them as he came up to them. The teams had assembled in the middle of the camping field and were being assigned numbers. There were several teams, all of which looked like they really wanted to win. Most were athletic.

"I'm ready," Megan said excitedly.

Connor shrugged noncommittally. "Sure, I guess."

"As ready as I'll ever be," was Peter's reply.

"Kent team, come get your number!" someone called from the organization table.

"I'll go get," Peter volunteered, and trotted off.

"Is something wrong?" Clark asked.

"I don't know," Megan said turning to Connor.

"Just give Peter the biggest head start we can on his leg of the race and everything should be fine," Connor said.

* * *

_Abel was right, I'm not winning material,_ Peter thought as he surveyed the competition while getting his teams numbers. Every one of the other teams looked like they competed during the school year in some kind of sport, even the junior teams looked like they played some kind of sport.

"I here to pick up the Kent teams numbers," he said to one of the organizers.

"Here it is. Hmm, you're lucky. You get number seven this year, and seven's a lucky number," she replied, handing him slips of paper and some safety pins.

"I hope so, we're gonna need it," he muttered as he headed back.

The other teams seemed cheerful as he meandered back to his. Some were doing warm up stretches, while other talked with their relations and team members. The Kent family was rather large and Peter wished that he'd been to one of their reunions before; he'd probably have had someone to talk with besides his teammates and a few of the adults.

* * *

"Do you know what's wrong with Peter?" Clark asked as the other boy went to fetch their number.

Connor nodded, but he didn't want to say anything out loud. "Megan, can you link us up for a minute?"

His girlfriend nodded, and her eyes glowed slightly as she telepathically linked the three teammates.

"_So what's wrong with Peter?_" Clark repeated after taking a moment to get used to the telepathic link.

"_Abel talked to Peter during the warm run, he said that Peter wasn't winning material_," Connor summarized.

"_That's rude, and very mean_," Megan said, taking offense. "_Do you think that Peter believed him?_"

Connor merely shrugged and looked to Clark. He wasn't in full understanding of social cues yet, but Clark was. Clark would probably know if Peter believed the Holt boy or not.

"_It's hard to say, I don't know the Parker's all that well,_" replied the reporter thoughtfully. "_From what Ma described of Peter I think that he may have believed them, but he might also be dealing with some emotional baggage right now as well._"

"_What does that mean?_" Connor didn't understand the colloquialism that Clark had used.

"_The Parker's experienced a tragic loss a little less than a year ago, and Ma tells me that May said that Peter has been really distant because of it_," Clark supplied. "_That's why I suggested we form a team; I thought it might help him._"

"_Oh, so is there anything we should do?_" Megan asked. Obviously she understood what Clark meant, but Connor was still a little confused. Though if Megan thought that they should help Peter in some way, then he didn't see why he shouldn't too.

"_Just be his friend, and giving him a good head start wouldn't be such a bad idea either_," Clark responded as Peter found his way back with the number tags.

* * *

"Alright everyone, welcome to the Family Games," announced the head organizer. "I'm Terry, and I'll be announcing each event. Right now, we're gonna start the relay race."

_Finally, we can get this other with,_ Peter thought eagerly. He'd been standing around with his team for at least fifteen minutes, and had been filling that time with a Spider-Man conversation with Megan and Connor.

"I think we all know how this works, but for any new comers, I'm gonna explain what's gonna happen," Terry continued. "Each of the runners will run their section of the race around the field. The first section is from the Hancock's camper to where the fence ends, the next section is from there to the Madison's tent, from the Madison's tent to where the fence begins again, and the last leg is from there to back to the Hancock's camper."

"So we're pretty much running one right angle of a rectangle?" Peter whispered to Clark.

He nodded. "Shush, listen."

"Okay, the rules are simple: no cheating, the baton has to cross the finish line in the hands of the runner to count, and have as much fun as possible," enthusiastically finished Terry. "So teams get to your starting lines and prepare to run for first."

* * *

"Sounds simple enough," Connor said with a shrug as the congregated teams disbanded to go to their starting lines. "We could win this."

"You mean we are going to win this," Megan corrected.

"I hope we do," Peter responded with some enthusiasm that hadn't been in his tone a few minutes ago. "Good luck, Megan, you're running first."

"Even more luck to you, Peter, you're running last," she replied happily as she headed to her starting point. "See you two at the finish line!"

"Ah … good luck," Connor said as he headed for his leg of the race.

* * *

Peter headed to the last part of the race. He hoped that he could win.

_No, I know I can win!_ he thought as he put his mind in a gear that it usually took up when he was Spider-Man. _I'm Spider-Man for crying out loud. I fight creeps like Doc Ock and Green Goblin on a regular basis; I should be able to help win a simple relay race._

A whistle blew on the other side of the field signaling that the race had begun.

**Okay, so this chapter is a little sooner than even I expected. So what do you guys think? Everything going well? Anyone feel suspence. **

**Thank you everyone for reading this, this is one of the most popular stories I've written. I've got over fifty people paying attention to this and I'm only at chapter seven, guys that's awesome, because I've got a lot in store and this is only the beginning.**

**I don't own Young Justice or Spider-Man.**

**~Rayner out**


	8. The Race

**The Race**

* * *

The sharp sound of a whistle annoyed Conner, but at least he knew indefinitely that the race had begun. He waited and watched as the first runners made their way towards him and the other second runners.

"_Come on, Megan, you can do!_" he cheered for her telepathically. Though he was sure that she didn't need him to cheer her on, he did it anyway. He supposed it was the least he could do.

"_I know, Conner. Get ready, I'm almost there_," she replied. All the other runners around him were getting ready to take up their positions.

Conner joined them; he had one hand reaching behind him to be passed the baton, while leaning forward, ready to run.

It wasn't too long before Conner felt the plastic baton in his hand, immediately he sprinted towards Clark's sections of the race.

"Go, Conner, go!" Megan hollered for him to go despite being out of breath.

* * *

"_And_ the Kent team takes the lead with Megan Morse coming in first for her section, and with Conner Kent taking a good head start," someone announced over a loud speaker for the convince of the other team members in the other areas of the track.

_Phew, that means we've got _some_ points_, Peter thought with a relieved smile.

"Sounds like your teams doing pretty good," someone said as they approached him.

"Huh?"

"You're teammate, Megan, she beat my brother, Arty, in the first leg," clarified Abel as he joined Peter in relaxing against the wooden fence.

"Yeah, I guess she did." Peter shrugged as he waited for the next section of the race to finish.

"Well, I hope your Conner's pretty fast, 'cause he's gonna have to be to be able to beat Sal," Abel continued. "He's pretty fast, but then again we always line our slowest up first and then progress to the fastest."

"Smart tactic," Peter commented uneasily. "But I'm sure we have a chance if Conner places first on his leg."

"_Folks_, the second leg is complete, and the Kent team is going strong. Conner's placed first and Clark's surging forward," the commentator announced as if on cue.

"Well, we're about to see if you're right." Abel gave Peter something of a knowing smile as they took their places on their starting line.

_Yeah, we sure will._

* * *

"Come on, let's go see Peter win this," Megan squealed as Conner joined her behind the fence. Before he had time to even agree, she was practically dragging him towards Peter's leg of the race. They hurried over the field and quickly positioned themselves at the finish line.

They arrived just as the third racers rounded the corner. Conner could see that Clark was in first, but just barely. He could see that Clark was holding back and letting the Holt runner eat his dust.

"Come on, Clark, you're almost there," Megan hollered as they watched the runner approach.

"Hey, isn't that Abel right beside Peter?" Conner asked when he spotted Peter standing beside the shaggy haired teen.

"Yeah, that can't be good," she replied. "I hope Peter's okay with that."

"Clark's coming in fast, and has taken first for the third leg. The Kent team is taking this race by storm, and now it's up to their first time participant Peter Parker," someone announced as the baton was handed off.

* * *

_This is it! I've got to give it everything, my team is counting on me._ When Peter felt the plastic tube in his hand, he took off as fast as he possibly could. At the corner of the field, he could see Megan and Conner. Megan looked like she was cheering him on, but all he could really hear was his pounding heart beat in his ears.

It wasn't too soon before other runners were trying to catch up to him, but surprisingly the only one who accomplished catching up with him was Abel.

The other young man was running along with Peter and had a determined look and a smile on his face.

"_Finally_, some real competition," Abel breathlessly said as he matched his pace to Peter's.

Abel sped up and seemed to want to push Peter to do the same, and he did.

* * *

"What's going on?" Megan asked Conner as they witnessed Abel and Peter match each other's pace and then accelerate.

"I don't know." Conner shrugged. It looked like Peter was perfectly capable of winning the race, what had they been afraid of? Even without the head start, it looked like Peter could have easily taken first.

"I didn't know Peter could go that fast," Clark said as he joined Conner and Megan. "Looks like he really didn't need such a head start after all."

"Go on, Abel! Make the sorry shrimp eat your dust!" a boy about the age of twelve called to Abel as the runner rounded the corner.

"He's not gonna make it, Arty," Conner heard the twelve-year-old's lanky companion say. "We're gonna have to do something about that."

Conner looked at the pair. They apparently were part of the Holt team, but where was the third member?

* * *

"_Can't_ you go any _faster_, Parker?" Abel said as they pushed each other faster.

"Yeah, I can, can you?" Peter quipped back. Half forgetting that he was running a relay race. Part of him forgot that he was Peter Parker at the moment and thought that he was Spider-Man, while the other part remained conscious of that fact and kept him in check.

It was actually becoming fun. Running against someone in a friendly competition wasn't so bad after all.

They were approaching the finish line, and when Abel made no reply, Peter knew it was time to become serious. That he was running for something more than fun.

_I'm gonna win this. I'm gonna ….Wha? _

A strong tingling sensation sparked in the back of his head suddenly. It was his spider-sense.

_Something's attacking or so says the forewarning pain in my head, but what and where?_

Peter didn't see anything dangerous; in fact he wondered just what in Kansas would attack him while he was playing the Family Games.

_It can't be broken-_

Before he could react in his usual time, he went stumbling to the ground. Something had hit his ankle and he went tumbling towards the ground, the baton falling from his hands despite his stick-to-everything power.

"Ow, ow, OW!" Peter groaned as he quickly managed to get up.

"Come on, Peter, get up! You're almost there!" he heard Megan call to him.

_Right, I'm almost there._ He grabbed the baton and ignored the pain from his scrapped knees and probably bruised leg as he again started to run.

* * *

Conner frowned as Peter fell. He'd seen what happened. A rock, underhandedly thrown by Arty, had been thrown onto the track right as Peter and Abel passed the two members of the Holt team. He didn't know if anyone else saw it, but they sure notice Peter fall.

"Come on, Peter, get up!" Megan yelled urgently, probably restraining herself not to rush on the track and assist their teammate. "You're almost there!"

Peter got up, evidently hurt, but continued on.

"That's it, Peter, you've got it!" Clark yelled as he caught up with Abel, but the two were almost at the finish line.

* * *

_Almost there, just a little bit longer_, Peter told himself as his strides matched Abel's once again. It still looked to be anyone's race, but after the fall Peter was a little more determined to win.

In a matter of seconds, he and Abel were matching each other speed and then Peter was ahead of the other teen. In a matter of seconds, the race was over, and he'd won.

"Folks, this was one of the most exciting relay races yet," said the commentator. "In a surprising turn of events, the Kent team has won, but only just. Someone get some bandages for Peter."

**Sorry for taking far too long to get this down, but I hope this works for making it up to. All your suggestions were useful for creating this chapter, and I think it actually got a mind of its own, because I never orginally intended for Peter to win, but he did and this is getting interesting.**

**As usual, leave your suggestion, ideas, comments, concerns, rantings, and ravings right on the review page. If I don't reply, it doesn't mean I'm dead or ignoring my lovely review, it means I'm on a missions trip and don't have WiFi or a WiFi capable device to respond to your reviews. **

**I want to send a specail thank you to everyone, this story is still in the beginning and there will be action stuff, but all you guys who are at a number of seventy-five are sticking through this and reading it right now. That's totally awesome.**

**Oh, while I'm gone go to my poll on my profile and tell me what event is next on the agenda. Please and thank you**

**~Rayner out**


	9. The Next Event

**The Next Event**

* * *

"How's your leg doing?" Connor asked as he entered the kitchen. Peter was sitting with his leg on a seat. As far as he could tell, Peter's leg wasn't hurt that badly. It was just skinned, but he was a Kryptonian-human hybrid so who was he to tell how badly a regular person got hurt under civilian conditions?

Peter looked up from the bandages he'd been fidgeting with to pass the time and replied with a laugh, "It's not that bad, Aunt May is just overreacting. It's just scraped, not fractured or whatever she thought. How are things going out there?"

After the first event in Family Games was over, everyone had gone back to conversing and just hanging out, well most everyone. The Holt family – namely the younger boys – had been thoroughly disappointed over their lose, and had gone somewhere to train for the next event, whatever said event might be.

Right now, he were helping Clark, Martha and May with making a cookout lunch. Megan, because she was a Martian, was keeping the small kids preoccupied by playing hide-and-seek in a field of hay piles. He could still hear the gleeful giggles from the group as they were either found or jumping in the hay.

Peter would have been out there too, but his aunt had insisted he up some ice on his ankle just in case Peter had sustained an injury worse than it looked. Connor thought that was a little odd. Peter might have the same build as Robin, but despite not being an acrobat, Peter didn't seem frail.

"They're almost done with the burgers, and hot dogs are coming along, but those will take a little longer," he replied taking a seat next to Peter.

"So what are you in here for?" Peter asked. "Not that I don't want company or anything."

"Your aunt and Clark wanted me to come check on you." Connor shrugged. "Megan would have, but she's busy right now."

* * *

Peter nodded. Megan was eager to talk to him when given the chance, but Connor on the other hand wasn't very talkative. While Megan wanted to hear everything about Spider-Man, save his identity, Connor was content with merely listening.

"So, have they announced the next event yet?" he asked. The last he'd heard about the Family Games was that they'd won the first event and had gotten a score of about sixteen points. As far as he knew the relay race was the only event of the day.

"No, not yet, but I was told Terry and the other organizers were still deciding about which one they wanted to do next," Conner answered. "I was told that it was either going to be Capture the Flag or Ultimate Dodge Ball."

"I hope it's _not_ Capture the Flag," Peter said.

"Why's that? Clark told me it's pretty fun."

"Ah …. Let's just say that I've had bad experiences while playing that game. Dodge Ball would be the lesser of the two evils." Peter shrugged; he'd rather avoid a rehashing of a field trip's disastrous game of Capture the Flag. Why anyone would elect to play that game while they waited for the bus to fix in the middle of nowhere was beyond him.

Connor raised an eyebrow. "You don't like Dodge Ball either?"

"No, not really."

Before Connor could ask another question, Jonathan Kent walked into the kitchen. "You two doing anything right now?"

"No, we were just talking," Connor answered.

"Good, 'cause I'm gonna need both of you two to help me, if you can."

Peter found that he was more or less being asked if he was ready to get back into doing some physical exercise.

"I'm fine, what do you need help with?"

"We're going to be clearing out the barn for the next event," Jonathan said as he led the two boys out of the house.

"And that event would be?" Peter inquired.

"Evidently they want to play Ultimate Dodge Ball after last year's fiasco; I sure hope that no one gets hurt this time."

_Maybe Dodge Ball wasn't the lesser of the two evils._

* * *

"How are things coming in here?" Connor heard Clark ask as the older Kryptonian entered the barn.

"We're almost done, but we could use your help over here," Jonathan called to Clark as everyone gathered around an old desk.

Surprisingly, moving most everything in the barn was pretty easy, even if he had to reign in his super strength to keep Peter from finding out that his teammates weren't exactly normal. Though Peter did seem pretty strong himself, so Connor only had to make sure that he didn't appear to be something far more than an equal to Peter.

"Why don't you and Peter get the door, and Connor and I'll lift?" Clark suggested. "On three."

Clark counted to three and Connor lifted. It was easy, but having to act like it wasn't was.

_I seriously dislike this,_ he thought as they set it down outside. Clark easily acted like it'd been a strain to lift the desk, but Connor didn't entirely understand how yet.

"You two look like you deserve lunch," Jonathan said, clapping him and Peter on the shoulder in congratulations. "You two have definitely earned, both by winning and helping."

"Come on, I came here to get you three for lunch," Clark told them as they were led to the pavilion. "Megan's waiting there for you two. She and the kids made ice cream while you were cleaning, and she's saved some for her teammates."

* * *

"How's your leg?" someone asked Peter as he stepped into the lunch line.

He turned around to see the person who'd addressed him. It was Abel.

"Its fine, thanks for asking," Peter said with a smile as he put a hamburger patty on a bun along with a few hot dogs. He was pretty hungry; breakfast had worn off sometime in the late morning.

"Glad to hear that, I would have been bummed if you couldn't have competed in any of the other events. It's nice to have some competition in the games, and my brothers are pretty excited about it too," Abel answered as they moved along through the line.

"Really?"

"Yeah, not many people are able to beat me in a race. I was MVP for my track team this year, but that won't matter much in the next event."

"Yeah, Ultimate Dodge Ball," Peter said unenthusiastically. "What is it anyway? I've never heard of it before."

Abel smiled. "If you don't know, then I'm not gonna ruin a _pleasant_ surprise for you. All I'll say is: I hope you're good at avoiding flying objects."

_You wouldn't believe how good I am at that._ Peter smiled. "Okay, may the best team win."

He offered a hand to Abel and he shook it. "Yeah, may the best team win."

**Okay, here's the next chapter. Please feel free to leave your comments, concerns, complaints, rantings, and MOST NEEDED, suggestions. **

**I actually had a lot of fun writing this one, because I mainly know its gonna leave you in suspense. I would have explained Ultimate Dodge Ball, but I thought it'd be better suited for the chapter in which the game actually takes place. **

**I'm super excited to write that one, because I've played Ultimate Dodge Ball before and it's extremely fun. I hope you all are ready for a preview of how I write fight scenes, because this is going to be the equivalant of one, or at least I hope it is.**

**Special thanks for the seven of you who voted on my poll, I'm glad that we finally broke the tie to see what game is next.**

**Lastly, do I need to say that I don't own either Spider-Man or Young Justice? If I owned them, I highly doubt that I'd either need to say this nor would I be writing on FanFiction.**

**~Rayner out**


	10. The Hunger Games, the First Round

**The Hunger Games, the First Round**

* * *

Peter followed Clark, Megan, and Conner to the barn where already people had congregated. There was an almost tangible anticipation in the air as the other teams milled about outside the red painted building while those not participating headed in.

_Why do I get a bad feeling about this?_ Peter wondered as they arrived. He remembered what Abel had said about the game. Dodge ball always entailed flying objects, but what would be so surprising about Ultimate Dodge Ball?

* * *

"Hey, Clark, what is Ultimate Dodge Ball?" Megan asked as they lounged around the front of the barn.

"Yeah, what is it? I've never heard of it before," Peter piped up.

Conner didn't say anything, but he wanted to know as well. He'd played dodge ball in P.E. class and he'd found that he didn't enjoy it much. It wasn't that he couldn't dodge, but that he was still unable to completely control the power with which he tossed the balls.

Clark adjusted his glasses in thought. Evidently the game was difficult to explain.

"I'm sure you've all read the _Hunger Games_?" Clark stated in a questioning tone. Peter and Megan nodded (Megan more eagerly than Peter), while Conner shook his. He recalled that title was on his summer reading list that he had yet to actually read. Clark went on, "Well, it's almost a dodge ball version of the _Hunger Games_ and for some it may as _well_ be. They'll explain the rules in a minute, so I'll leave it at that."

* * *

_That's just perfect,_ Peter thought as he involuntarily gnawed on his inner lip. _It's no wonder everyone's excited about this game._

Despite having every confidence that he could win the game with great ease, he was slightly unnerved by it. Unlike the race, he was nervous for the exact opposite reason. How was he supposed to seem normal during this event?

How was he supposed to play this game without showing off his spider-sense? It was going to be hard to ignore that tingle he always felt in the back of his head whenever danger was near.

"_Alright_, everyone," called Terry over a megaphone. "_Welcome_ back to the Family Games."

Everyone began to circle round the head organizer of the Family Games. Most of the teens and adults playing were excited.

"As you all know it's time for … _Ultimate Dodge Ball_." Terry paused for a cheer that erupted in the crowd. Peter couldn't help but notice that the Holt team was among the loudest. "I'll be going over the rules of Ultimate Dodge Ball for those who are new to the Family Games.

"First off the same rules of regular Dodge Ball apply. You throw the ball and if someone catches it you're out. A ball hits the ground and then hits you; you're still in, and so on. Most importantly head shots do _not_ count.

"Unlike Dodge Ball, the _only_ boundaries are the first level of the barn," she declared happily. "When you get out, sit or kneel down _and_ pay attention to the person who got you out, 'causes if they get out, you're back in."

"I see why they call it '_Hunger Game_ Dodge Ball'," Peter whispered to Clark as the rules came to an end.

"To make this _more_ competitive and a little more timely, this year we're going to have a time limit on this game," Terry said. "There will be intervals of ten minutes. When that time limit is up, all those who are out are out permanently. Now that rules are done let's get started."

* * *

"Well, this is going to be interesting," Conner muttered as they entered the barn. The other teams were ecstatic.

"This is going to be fun," Megan answered. She, of _course_, was excited about this; she'd always enjoyed games like this.

"'_Fun' _is not the ideal word that I'd use to describe it," Peter said. "The Holts look like they're going to enjoy this far _more_ than they should."

Conner eyed said team. Abel looked rather cocky, Arty and Sal looked like they were all too eager to begin. The second oldest Holt boy (if Conner recalled correctly his name was Brock) had a wolfish grin and a hungry look in his eyes as he evaluated everyone as they entered the barn.

"They might be the Careers, but _we_ can win this," Megan said energetically.

"You really like the _Hunger Games_, don't you?" Peter asked with raised eyebrows.

Before Megan could answer, Terry began speaking over the megaphone again, "Everyone, get _ready_ … _set_ ….. _GO_!"

An abrupt cheer erupted in the hay loft as chaos began to reign on the ground level.

* * *

Peter wasn't quite sure what was happening, because it all went too fast. Large foam balls were flying to and fro around the room.

Instinctively, he was weaving, jumping, and dodging the projectiles. He was almost tempted to leap onto one of the wooden beams to avoid the fast flying balls.

Clark and Megan and Conner were doing far better than him, or at least that was his opinion of his performance. Megan had caught a ball and was going after the other participants of the game. Clark was dodging and looking like he was enjoying the game. Conner had a ball in hand, a serious expression on his face, and was rearing back to throw the ball.

_What on Earth?!_ His spider-sense erupted as if he was in real immediate danger, and he quickly went into action.

He jumped to the side and practically over a stall door narrowly avoiding a foam ball hitting him.

Looking back, he saw that Sal and Arty Holt were giving him a slightly astonished look. Evidently they'd tag teamed to get him out and were _not_ expecting such moves.

"Let the Hunger Games _begin_," he muttered softly as he tossed the ball that had been thrown at him at the two Holts.

Sal reacted faster than Arty and dove off to the side, letting the ball hit his brother.

* * *

"With some _amazing_ skills, Peter Parker has gotten Arthur Holt _out_!" Terry said over the megaphone as Conner narrowly avoided yet another foam ball. "That's one Holt down, three to go folks, _but_ you'll have to get Parker out and it looks like his previous injuries aren't stopping him either."

"_Oh my gosh, did you see _that_, Conner?_" Megan asked, psychically establishing a communications link between him and her.

"_Ah … was I supposed to see something?_" he asked. He was starting to feel like he was on a mission or doing a training exercise back at the Cave as he kept moving. Already a number of people had gotten out, so it was becoming harder and harder to maneuver around.

"Yes_, Peter has some hidden skills or something,_" she exclaimed. "_He pretty much jumped over a stall door before throwing a ball at Arty._"

"_So _that's_ what happened._" He moved closer to where Megan was playing. Tag teaming was a pretty good tactic.

"_Yeah, but it looks like he might have made a few enemies too,_" she said, concern evident in her tone.

Conner took a minute to spy Peter across the room. He seemed to be doing fairly well, especially considering that the Holts along with some other people whom Megan would probably deem 'Careers' were ganging up on him.

"_He looks fine to me._"

"_Yeah, but they're cornering him,_" Megan pointed out and Conner realized that the Holts and company actually were. Peter was being driven into a corner by two of the three remaining Holts and possibly a whole other team. "_Come on we_ have _to help._"

* * *

_This isn't good. This _really_ isn't good,_ Peter thought frantically. Sal and his second oldest brother had rounded up a posy and were trying to eliminate him from the game.

Peter had pretty much given up hope of avoiding relying on him spider-sense and was listening to the warning mechanism within the realm of human possibilities as much as he could.

He hadn't a clue as to _what_ his excuse would be later, but he didn't care. He'd suspended normal for a moment and put on his Spider-Man persona.

The six guys surrounding him looked like they very well could have been related to each other, and Peter was pretty sure that they all qualified as Careers, but it appeared that Sal was their leader.

"Hey, _Don_," the second oldest Holt commented casually. "You want to do the honor of getting this shrimp out?"

Don accepted the ball that was offered to him with an arrogant that reminded Peter too much of Flash's expression when he was about to be shoved in a locker.

"It'd be my _pleasure_, Brock," the teen practically growled and tossed the ball at Peter.

Instead of dodging, Peter grinned broadly and decided to pull a trick out of his sleeve.

The ball sailed towards him and within a few seconds of hitting him, he caught it.

"Nice shot, Don. How does _mine_ compare?" Peter quipped before tossing the ball right back. Don was so stunned that he didn't even attempt to dodge it, he just stood there, and eyes widened slightly and let the ball hit him.

"Get _him_," Sal ordered, stepping closer and the others in the Holt posy followed his lead.

Peter's smirk faltered momentarily as he noted the expression of the Careers.

_Maybe that _wasn't_ such as smart move._

He glanced around, looking for a way out. If he didn't weasel his way out of this one, Peter knew that he wouldn't be proceeding to the next round.

"Alright _folks_," Terry said through the megaphone after she'd sounded an air horn to get everyone's attention and to indicate that this was more than a commentary. "That's the first round. If you're out, and we _know_ who is, please make your way up to the hay loft. Those who are still in, please step out of the barn so we can set up for round two."

Peter breathed a sigh of relief as the Holt posy dropped their balls and trudged outside. He wasn't out, not just yet, but he'd definitely made enemies.

* * *

"Are you _alright_?" Megan asked Peter as she and Conner approached him at a water station. Conner and Megan had attempted to get to Peter before the round was up, but they'd gotten side tracked avoiding a hailstorm of balls courtesy of Abel.

Peter took a swig of water before replying, "Yeah, I'm fine, just a little worn out. Clark wasn't kidding that this game is the Dodge Ball equivalent of the Hunger Games."

"Speaking of which, where _is_ Clark?" Connor questioned as he turned to scan the crowd. He hadn't seen the older man since the beginning of the game. It really didn't bother him while he'd been playing. He figured that Clark could handle the game by himself, but now that the first round was over he had to wonder what happened.

"I don't see him," Megan commented worriedly. "Did you see him at all during that round?"

"Yeah, I did once, but he looked like he was doing just fine," Peter responded.

"If you guys are looking for Clark, you won't see him here," someone said and the three of them turned around to see Brock Holt getting a drink of water.

"Uh-huh and why is that?" Conner said skeptically.

"Abel got him out, and you're team had better watch it, 'cause all three of you are next on our list," he responded in an ominous growl. "'Specially the shrimp. Your tricks are only gonna get you so far."

"Good to know, and may the odds _be_ ever in your favor," Peter retorted with a self-satisfied smirk.

Brock just shook his head and walked off to join his brothers.

"Well, this is going to be fun," Conner murmured.

"Yeah, no kidding, not only have I got the Holts trying to get me, but I think every other team is going to try to get me out," Peter groaned. Conner scanned the crowd again and noticed some askance glances in their direction.

"Yeah, you sure surprised everyone when you pulled off that move you did," Megan said happily. "I wasn't expecting that and I doubt anyone else was either."

"I think _I_ surprised myself."

"Well, I hope you keep surprising yourself, 'cause the next round is about to start," Conner interrupted the conversation before Megan could reply.

"Yeah, me too."

**I had wanted to make this chapter the whole game, but found that it'd take too long and I was sortya running dry on ideas on how things happen. **

**As always I'm opened to suggestions, comments, concerns, and questions. Please review. I kinda wanna see if we can get to a hundred reviews. It doesn't seem unfathamable. **

**Yes, for those concerned, the chapters are going to get longer. I now have a designated notebook to tote around and write in whenever class work becomes too much of a bore. **

**Special thanks to all the loyal reviewers, I hope you've enjoyed this anticpated chapter, and there will be more to come.**

**~Rayner out**


End file.
